[Edaily Starin Choi Hee-jae Reporter] “I wanted to ask myself—and share with the audience—the question of how filmmakers should portray the suffering of others in their films.”

Director Lee Chang-dong made these remarks on the 12th (local time) at the winners’ press conference for the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, held at the “Palazzo del Cinema” (Palace of Cinema) on the Lido island in Venice, Italy.
On that day, Director Lee received the Grand Jury Prize—the Silver Lion—for his film *Possible Love*. The Grand Jury Prize is a major award presented second only to the Golden Lion, the top prize in the Venice Competition section; this marks the first time a Korean film and a Korean director have received this award.
Speaking at the press conference following the award ceremony, Director Lee began by saying, “I believe we are living in an era where filmmakers are grappling with increasingly profound questions about cinema.” He continued, “In a situation where people are finding it difficult to gather in theaters and the connections once forged through film are being severed, we cannot help but ponder what kind of films we should make.”
He continued, “I want to connect with audiences on a deeper level, and I hope the questions posed in the film resonate with their thoughts,” adding, “I believe this award serves to encourage precisely that.”
Director Lee, who had bought a dream from Jo Yeo-jeong before the award ceremony, joked, “I bought it because Ms. Jo Yeo-jeong had a good dream. That’s a custom in Korea,” and added, “I think that dream is what brought this good fortune.”

“Possible Love” tells the story of two couples—Ho-seok (played by Seol Kyung-gu), a laid-off worker, and his wife Mi-ok (played by Jeon Do-yeon), as well as documentary director Ye-ji (played by Jo Yeo-jeong) and her husband Sang-woo (played by Jo In-sung)—who come together to produce a documentary and are confronted with each other’s different lives and hidden desires.
Regarding the motivation and background behind *Possible Love*, the director explained, “The story began with a mass layoff at a major corporation in Korea about ten years ago,” adding, “The workers went on strike, and the forced suppression of the strike caused a social uproar—I, too, was deeply shaken by it.”
She also shared the behind-the-scenes story of how she initially attempted to turn this story into a film but eventually abandoned the project. “I wasn’t sure if I could actually make that film or if I was qualified to do so, so I shelved it,” she said. “Much later, I reimagined it as a story about a documentary director filming the stories of those people (the laid-off workers).”
During that process, he grappled with the question of how a film should address the suffering of others. Director Lee emphasized, “The suffering of others is often exploited for the sake of the film, but I wanted to ask myself—and share with the audience—the question of how filmmakers should portray the suffering of others in their work.”
This award is also significant because it marks Director Lee’s return to Venice to receive the Silver Lion after 24 years. In 2002, he won the Director’s Award (equivalent to the Silver Lion), the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Prize, and the Best Newcomer Award (Moon So-ri) for *Oasis*. This time, following his Grand Jury Prize win for *Possible Love*, he added the FIPRESCI Prize to his list of honors.
This marks the first time in 14 years that a Korean film has won an award in the Venice Film Festival’s main competition, following Director Kim Ki-duk’s *Pieta*, which won the Golden Lion in 2012.
“Possible Love” was selected as South Korea’s entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards and has been invited to major international film festivals, including Toronto, New York, San Sebastián, Zurich, Vancouver, and the Busan International Film Festival. It will open in select theaters on the 23rd and be released on Netflix on November 6.